Fringe 2012: The Shape of Things
Photo courtesy of Lone Pine.
Lone Pine
Friday, July 6, 9:15 p.m.
Saturday, July 7, 12:30 p.m.
Sunday, July 8, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, July 10, 6:45 p.m.
Wednesday, July 11, 4:15 p.m.
Friday, July 13, 6:15 p.m.
Sunday, July 15, 1 p.m.
St. Vlad’s Theatre (620 Spadina Avenue)
A love story of a very different sort, Neil Labute’s play tells the tale of Adam, an introverted student working at a museum whose life is turned upside down one day after a meeting with the free-spirited Evelyn. She’s a brash, opinionated art major and sees in Adam, despite his rough edges, enough potential to enter into a relationship. Meanwhile, his friends Jenny and Phillip are planning an underwater marriage as an expression of their own love. (Some may remember Labute’s film adaptation starring Paul Rudd and Rachel Weisz.)
The production does the material exquisite justice, with all of the actors finding the right dramatic notes while mining the laughs hidden within the rather misanthropic study of human nature. Jennifer Neales exudes the quirky, magnetic energy required to subtly prod Christian Smith’s Adam into an awkwardly amusing transformation from ugly duckling to handsome swan. The supporting cast shines, too, providing a necessary counterpoint to the main plot. And everything hurtles towards a climax that seems all but inevitable in retrospect, but still packs a wallop.